Turning a MVP into an award-winning e-gift app
Industry:
Ecommerce / Digital Gifting
Project:
PRSNT
Team:
3 Software developers
1 Project manager
1 Business analyst
1 Data security specialist
Duration of project:
7 months (ongoing)
Country:
United Kingdom
Tech stack:
A "happy" app from a London-based company that revolutionizes gift-giving. With this app, users can send and share gifts directly from their smartphones, choosing from over 100 top UK brands. Recipients can redeem their gifts either online or in person. All gifts are delivered instantly and arrive digitally wrapped, allowing the recipient to scratch away the wrapping to reveal the surprise inside.
Project Overview
PRSNT, despite an initial MVP setback, set out to revolutionize gift-giving with a modern, eco-friendly app. They envisioned a tool for online gift delivery, birthday reminders, and gift ideas. We took their MVP and transformed it, enhancing the backend and crafting intuitive dashboards. We have successfully included features like instant gift delivery, timely birthday reminders, AR-enhanced messages, flexible gift redemption and built several modules like automated marketing campaigns and B2B dashboard. The result is a successful e-gifting app featuring products from top brands like ASOS and Marks & Spencer, nominated as best app in UK, in 2021. PRSNT's active users also grew from 18,000 to 34,000, allowing people to send gifts with a rich, real-world-like experience.
The Challenge:
Turn aborted MVP into e-Gifting platform
PRSNT launched in 2019 to simplify and improve the gift-giving experience. They set out to create an app that would allow users to send gifts from top UK high street brands, all ready to pick up in-store. But they didn't get it right the first time. The initial developers they outsourced left the app incomplete, impacting their budget and delaying the MVP needed for investment. We took on the work, but had to do it within budget and time constraints. Analysis led to a comprehensive codebase audit, reengineering, refactoring and critical updates to stabilise the platform. Furthermore, to meet user needs and market goals, multiple microservices and third-party integrations were to be added.
Incomplete MVP
The MVP was left at 66% with lots of legacy issues. Reverse engineering and refactoring MVPs was a complex challenge, requiring a thorough understanding of existing code and where it went wrong.
Budget Overrun
Early development, managed by another offshore team, was over budget and in danger of running into financial difficulties.
Project Delays
As a result of the initial underperformance, many processes risked being delayed, which could affect our launch timing and overall strategy.
Regulatory Compliance and Code Errors
There were significant GDPR issues, outdated frameworks and major gaps in the core code.
The Solution:
UK's #1 E-gifting app (continous development)
Responding to these challenges took us from business and market analysis to technical development and marketing automation to drive engagement.
It started with a cross-platform admin dashboard, built with Flutter, to give managers easy control of their business activities on any device. To address sustainability issues and GDPR compliance, we refactored the backend framework and reverse-engineered the code to handle high loads.
Since giving is all about surprise, we replicated the experience with features like gift unwrapping and AR messages. We integrated Tillo to provide access to brands like ASOS, and Twilio for multiple payment options like Google Pay, Apple Pay and PayPal.Development of the project continued with automated marketing campaigns and birthday discount notifications via a built-in module.
These efforts have led to PRSNT being featured in Forbes and The Guardian, establishing it as the UK's leading to go e-gifting app with x2 more engagement.
Development Phases
Managed high development costs, resolved offshore team quality issues, established technical and business foundations for future growth, and assessed market response to the basic app version.
Revamped the app by conducting a comprehensive audit, upgrading technology, improving security and GDPR compliance, refactoring code for better performance, implementing a scalable microservices architecture, and fostering efficient development processes and modular design for future enhancements.
Improved core functionality, streamlined gift selection and redemption, overhauled the user interface, and prepared for a broader market release with options for gift redemption, reminder systems, user testing, and value proposition enhancement.
Implemented cutting-edge AR for personalized video messages, added networking features for sharing and virality, explored innovative gifting options, expanded the gift catalog and retail partnerships, enhanced emotional and social aspects of gifting, and developed features for diverse user segments, including corporate clients.
Launched a loyalty program for user retention, introduced a B2B dashboard for corporate gifting, and implemented targeted marketing for app launch and user acquisition. Won awards for Best Mobile App for 2021 and regional business recognition, demonstrated app success through user growth and engagement metrics, and secured additional funding rounds based on market success.
Integrations
Converter optimization: To optimize efficiency and resource usage, the team worked on improving the efficiency of the currency converter, streamlining communication protocols, and optimizing payment processing to reduce delays.
UX features: A tutorial was implemented at the beginning of the application to assist users in understanding how to use the app effectively, improving usability for new users.
Automation: It was leveraged for unit testing, integration testing, and regression testing — identifying and addressing bugs early in the development process, reducing testing costs and improving overall software quality.
Results
Effective project management
30%
more features
Despite the constraints of the original timeline and budget, additional features, including a complex new model not initially planned, were successfully delivered
Awards
2021
best mobile app
Prsnt would also go on to feature in The Guardian and Forbes, two of the world’s leading news outlets, garnering stellar user ratings in the Apple App store and Google Play store and win awards for Best Mobile App.
Market positioning
#1
gifting app
Established as a leading app in the UK’s gifting sector, known for its innovation and user-friendly experience.
Lessons
Have an idea?
Related Case Studies
Online pet marketplace on desktop
Ecommerce
- IT Consulting
- Cloud engineering
- Staff Augmentation
- CTO as a Service
Educational app & platform for parents
EdTech
- IT Consulting
- Digital Transformation
- Agile Development